(A) Preferred source. Due to their high energy efficiency, long life and spectral characteristics, low-pressure sodium (LPS) lamps are currently the preferred illumination source throughout the town. Their use is encouraged for outdoor illumination whenever its use would not be detrimental to the use of the property.
(1) Class 1 Lighting. Businesses who choose to use at least 80% LPS for their Class 1 application are eligible to apply for an additional 10% increase in the lumens per acre allowed for their site.
(2) Class 2 Lighting. LPS lamps are required though up to 10% of the total lumens used for Class 2 lighting may be non-LPS light. Ten percent white light added to the LPS light permits nearly normal color perception.
(B) General.
(1) Outdoor floodlighting by flood light or spot light projection above the horizontal is prohibited except for unshielded fixtures specifically permitted under divisions (D)(5) and (D)(7) of this section and properly adjusted motion sensing security lighting fixtures as defined in § 153.151.
(2) All commercial light fixtures are required to be shielded and shall be installed in such a manner that the shielding complies with the definition of fully shielded fixtures. Residential requirements and exceptions are provided in division (C) below. Building lighting that incorporates the colors of a company logo, trademark or sign shall be considered as signage.
(3) All light fixtures, including security lighting, except street lamps, shall be aimed or shielded so that the direct illumination shall be confined to the property boundaries of the source. Particular care is to be taken to assure that the direct illumination does not fall onto or across any public or private street or road. Motion sensing lighting fixtures shall be properly adjusted, according to the manufacturer's instructions, to turn off when detected motion ceases.
(4) Installation of new mercury vapor light fixtures has been prohibited since May 22, 1985 in Yavapai County. Only mercury vapor replacement bulbs shall be sold or installed for use as outdoor lighting within the town, and the use of mercury vapor light fixtures for outdoor lighting is prohibited after July 1, 2005.
(5) Search lights, laser source lights, strobe or flashing lights, or any similar high-intensity portable and or temporary light shall not be permitted, except for those utilized by law enforcement, emergency services personnel, public utilities and road construction/maintenance crews or at their direction.
(6) Class 1 Lighting, including but not limited to sales, service, commercial, assembly, repair, maintenance and industrial areas, may only continue in operation until 10:00 p.m., or for as long as the area is in active use but once off remain off during non-business hours.
(7) Class 2 Lighting shall have no time restrictions unless stipulated as a condition of approval for new projects.
(8) Class 3 Lighting shall be extinguished after 10:00 p.m. or when the business closes, whichever is later and remain off during non-business hours, low-wattage decorations for recognized holidays shall be counted towards the business properties' total lumen count. Flagpole lighting is exempt.
(a) Up-lighting or ground-mounted lighting may be allowed to accent unique features of a building (such as outstanding architectural features but not an entire building) and/or surrounding landscaping (specimen trees with dense year round foliage or large native shrub masses) subject to approval by the Development Services Director or Zoning Administrator or his/her designee. Up-lighting or ground-mounted lighting shall be designed and installed in such a manner as to minimize glare with special consideration in areas where there is vehicle and pedestrian traffic, or where such lighting will not unduly interfere with use and enjoyment of adjacent or nearby properties.
(b) All feature lighting which is directed upwards shall be placed in such a manner that the angle of the lamp shall not be greater than 45 degrees measured from a horizontal plane to a line projected through the center of the lamp, and fixtures shall be shielded to contain and direct the light onto the feature to be lighted.
(9) Multi-class lighting, except for security lights, must conform to the time limitations of the most strict class.
(10) Except as permitted in divisions (D)(2), (D)(4) and (D)(6) below, total outdoor light output as defined in § 153.151, excluding streetlights used for illumination of public rights-of-way, of any development project other than single family residential (see division (C) of this section) shall not exceed 100,000 lumens per net acre, averaged over the entire property. Of this total no more than 5,500 lumens per net acre may be used in unshielded fixtures.
(C) Residential.
(1) Class lighting. Residential lighting, as it may contain certain aspects of any of the lighting classes as may be found in Class 1, 2 or 3 as defined in § 153.151 shall be considered allowed so long as the intended use is allowed within the particular zoning district.
(2) Shielding. Fully shielded fixtures are required for all lamps.
(3) Lighting amount. Residential parcels containing more than one acre are allowed 20,000 lumens of lighting. Residential parcels containing one-half acre to one net acre are allowed 10,000 lumens of lighting. Residential parcels containing less than one-half acre are allowed 7,500 lumens of lighting. Motion sensing lights, as defined in § 153.151, shall not be subject to the noted lumen cap. Motion sensing lights can be turned to "constant on" for the purposes of illuminating yard areas for private recreational activities such as barbeques, parties, working with livestock or other similar gatherings without need for a temporary permit so long as they are returned to their automatic settings at the conclusion of the activity.
(4) Certification. Applicant to provide manufacturer's cut-sheet/catalog information detailing fixture shielding and lumen output of bulbs to be installed, and where required by the Development Services Director or Zoning Administrator or his/her designee, a drawing/illustration of the proposed shielded fixture.
(5) Curfew. Outside, unshielded lighting shall be extinguished after 10:00 p.m and remain off until daylight. Motion sensing security lighting is exempted. No dusk to dawn controls are permitted for unshielded lighting.
(6) Exemptions. Low lumen decorative lighting for recognized holidays, permanent low lumen landscape lighting (180 lumens or less per bulb) and flag lighting are exempt from the total lumen count for a given property.
(D) Commercial/nonresidential.
(1) Airport. Airport lighting which is required for the safe and efficient movement of aircraft during flight, take-off, landing and taxiing is exempt from the provisions of this chapter. Lighting used for illumination of aircraft loading, unloading, and servicing areas is exempt from the lumens per net acre limits of division (B)(10) above, although it must conform to all other requirements of this chapter. All other outdoor lighting at airport facilities shall comply with the provisions of this chapter.
(2) Outdoor display lots.
(a) Class. Lighting for outdoor display lots shall be considered Class 1 (Color Rendition).
(b) Shielding. All such lighting shall utilize fully shielded luminaries that are installed in a fashion that maintains the fully-shielded characteristics.
(c) Lighting amount. Lighting amounts may exceed the limit listed in division (B)(10) for the area of the display only. However, when the proposed lumens per acre exceed the limits of division (B)(10), the installation shall be designed to achieve no greater than the minimum luminance levels for the activity as recommended by the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA). If IESNA has more than one applicable recommended practice, then the lowest figure shall apply. Street lighting is exempt from the total lumen count for a given property.
(d) Off-site spill. The installation shall limit off-site spill (off the parcel containing the display lot) to a maximum of 0.5 fc at any location on any nonresidential property, and 0.05 fc at any location on any residential property, as measurable from any orientation of the measuring device.
(e) Curfew. Outdoor display lot lighting exceeding the lumens per acre cap of division (B)(11) shall be turned off at 10:00 p.m. or within 30 minutes after closing of the business or activity, whichever is later, and once off remain off during non-business hours. Lighting in the outdoor display lot after this time shall be limited to Class 2 lighting, and shall conform to all restrictions of this subchapter applicable for this class, including the lumens per acre caps in division (B)(10) and lamp type standards of division (A) of this section.
(f) Certification. Every such lighting system shall be certified by an Arizona registered engineer, other certified lighting specialist or equivalent manufacturer documentation as conforming to all applicable restrictions of this subchapter as installed.
(3) Parking lot. Lighting standards (poles) shall be sized in such a manner that the top of any luminaire does not exceed 18 feet above adjacent grade, unless otherwise stipulated as a condition of approval for new projects.
(4) Service station.
(a) Class. Lighting for service station or similar canopies shall be considered Class 1 lighting.
(b) Shielding. All luminaries shall be flush with the lower surface of canopies and utilize flat glass or plastic covers.
(c) Canopy lighting amount. The total light output used for illuminating service station canopies, defined as the sum of under-canopy initial bare-lamp outputs in lumens, shall not exceed 60 lumens per square foot of canopy. All lighting mounted under the canopy, except internally illuminated signs, shall be included in the total.
(d) Inclusion toward total outdoor light output. Twenty-five percent of the lumen output of all lamps mounted within or under a canopy, except internally illuminated signs, is included in the lumen caps in division (B)(10). Street lighting is exempt from the total lumen count for a given property.
(5) Signs.
(a) Externally illuminated signs. Lighting used for all externally illuminated signs shall conform to all restrictions of this chapter, shall be fully shielded, and shall be turned off at 10:00 p.m. or when the business closes, whichever is later. Such lighting is included in the total outdoor output (see division (B)(10)).
(b) Internally illuminated signs. Outdoor internally illuminated advertising signs shall either be constructed with an opaque background and translucent letters and symbols or with a colored (not white, cream, off-white, yellow or other light color) translucent background, with either translucent or opaque letters and symbols. Opaque means only that the material must not transmit light from the internal illumination source; the color of opaque backgrounds is not restricted by this section. Lamps used for internal illumination of such signs shall not be included in the lumens per net acre limit set in division (B)(10).
(c) All illuminated signs shall be turned off at 10:00 p.m. or when the business closes, whichever is later, and once off remain off during non-business hours. Signs subject to this curfew must have functioning and properly adjusted automatic timers.
1. All neon lighting (indoor or outdoor), except for that used in permitted signage, shall be fully shielded and shall be turned off at 10:00 p.m. or when the business closes, whichever is later.
2. The requirements for shielding of light emissions for outdoor light fixtures are as follows. The following table uses the following Shielding/Use Code: A = allowed, unshielded, F = allowed, fully shielded.
Lamp Type | Shielding |
Lamp Type | Shielding |
Class 1, 2 and 3 Lighting: | |
All lamp types above 2,050 lumens | F (see Note 1) |
All types below 2,050 lumens | A (see Note 2) |
All neon tube lighting | F |
Lamps in Motion Sensing Security Lights (See B) | A (see division (B)(3) of this section) |
Note 1. Examples of lamp types of 2,050 lumens and below (the acceptability of a particular light is decided by its initial lumen output, not wattage. Values listed here are approximate. Check manufacturer's specifications): | |
a. 100 watt standard incandescent and less | |
b. 100 watt midbreak tungsten-halogen (quartz) and less | |
c. 25 watt T-12 cool white fluorescent and less | |
d. 18 watt low pressure sodium and less | |
Note 2. Lights shall be shielded or directed to minimize light spilled into the night sky or adjacent properties. | |
(6) Sports field.
(a) Class. Lighting, in all cases, for all outdoor athletic fields, courts, pools, tracks or ranges shall be considered Class 1 (Color Rendition). Sports field lighting at schools is exempt from this chapter as provided for in § 153.015 regarding publicly owned and operated facilities used for essential government purposes.
(b) Shielding. Fully shielded lighting shall be required for fields designed for amateur, recreational or non-professional sports activity. For professional level sports facilities where fully shielded fixtures are not utilized, acceptable luminaries shall include those which:
1. Are provided with internal or external glare control louvers, or both, and installed so as to minimize up-light and off-site light trespass as defined in § 153.151; and
2. Are installed and maintained with aiming angles that permit no greater than 2% of the light emitted by each fixture to project above the horizontal.
(c) Lighting amount. When the proposed lumens per acre exceeds the limits of division (B)(10), the installation shall be designed to achieve no greater than the minimum illuminance levels for the activity as recommended by the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA). If IESNA has more than one applicable recommended practice, then the lowest figure shall apply. Street lighting is exempt from the total lumen count for a given property.
(d) Off-site spill. The installation shall also limit off-site spill (off the parcel containing the sports facility) to a maximum of 0.5 fc at any location on any nonresidential property, and 0.05 fc at any location on any residential property, as measurable from any orientation of the measuring device. If lighting products are not available to meet these standards, then the product providing the lowest off-site spill levels shall be required.
(e) Curfew. All events shall be scheduled so as to complete all activity by 10:00 p.m. Illumination of the playing field, court, track or range shall be permitted after 10:00 p.m. only to conclude a scheduled event that was unable to conclude before 10:00 p.m. due to unusual circumstances, and once off remain off during non-business hours.
(f) Certification. Every such lighting system shall be certified by an Arizona registered engineer, other certified lighting specialist or equivalent manufacturer documentation as conforming to all applicable restrictions of this chapter as installed.
(g) Non-field lighting. All site lighting not directly illuminating the field, court, track or range shall conform to all applicable standards of this subchapter.
(7) Nonconforming uses.
(a) Mercury vapor lamps are prohibited to be used for outdoor lighting.
(b) No new bottom or side-mounted outdoor advertising sign lighting shall be issued permits after July 1, 2005.
(c) No other outdoor lighting fixture or use which was lawfully installed or implemented prior to the enactment of this subchapter shall be required to be removed or modified except as expressly provided herein; however, no modification or replacement shall be made to a nonconforming fixture unless the fixture thereafter conforms to the provisions of this chapter, except that identical lamp replacement is allowed. Time restrictions described in divisions (B)(6), (B)(7), (B)(8), (B)(9), (D)(2)(e), (D)(5)(c), and (D)(6)(e) of this section shall, however, be applied to such existing lighting.
(d) In the event that the use of an outdoor lighting fixture is discontinued for six months or is damaged to the point of requiring repairs for safe operation, the repaired or replacement fixture shall comply with the provisions of this chapter.
(Ord. 08-40, passed 6-3-2008)